2015年7月16日星期四

每天走20分鐘的優點：激發BDNF和內啡肽（endorphin）

腦源性神經營養因子（BDNF英語：Brain-derived neurotrophic factor）是人腦中的一種蛋白質，由腦源性神經營養因子基因生成。腦源性神經營養因子是神經營養因子中的一種，這種因子存在於人的神經系統中。
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brain-derived_neurotrophic_factor

這篇很好，運動除了會分泌BDNF，更分激發內啡肽（endorphin），亦稱安多酚或腦內啡、腦內嗎啡，是一種可於動物體內自行生成的類嗎啡生物化學合成物。它是由脊椎動物的腦下垂體和丘腦下部所分泌的氨基化合物（肽）。它能與嗎啡受體（Opioid receptor）結合，產生跟嗎啡、鴉片劑一樣的止痛和欣快感，等同天然的鎮痛劑。利用藥物可增加腦內啡的分泌。
http://birdeemag.com/this-is-your-brain-after-walking/

YOUR BRAIN AFTER A 20 MINUTE WALK

By Birdee on August 13 2013 - Be Well, Girlosophy, Nerdy Birdee

People are always banging on about how important exercise is for… everything.

Perhaps one of the biggest and most-touted benefits of doing regular physical activity is that it increases happiness. Yep, exercise = better mood. Duh! We get it!

But before you click that little ‘x’ at the top of the page, take a look at what actually happens in your brain after a 20 minute walk:

Significant chemical changes are definitely occurring in the brain on the right.

You might have heard that magical feel-good chemicals calledendorphins are released during and after exercise. But what does that actually mean? It’s a lot more complex than it sounds.

Firstly, your brain recognises exercise as stress, and releases chemicals to “protect” your body from the stress. From the moment you begin exercising – as the pressure in your heart builds – you release a protein called BDNF (Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor).

BDNF protects but also repairs the memory neurons in your brain, which effectively acts as a reset switch. As Leo Widrich at Buffer explains, that’s why you often feel so at ease and things seem clearer after exercise.

At the same time, endorphins (also chemicals that fight stress) are released in your brain. Endorphins minimise the discomfort of exercise, block the feeling of pain and give you that addictive “feel good” rush.

Together, BDNF and endorphins provide the mood-boost and mental clarity. But it’s important to remember that you don’t need to be out running marathons to reap the benefits of exercise.

“One of the biggest misconceptions is that exercise has to be hard,” writes New York Times health columnist Gretchen Reynolds. “That exercise means marathon running or riding your bike for three hours or doing something really strenuous. [But] humans were born to stroll.”

Further, research suggests that we might not actually benefit from doing any more than 20 minutes of exercise a day. “You get prolonged life, reduced disease risk — all of those things come in in the first 20 minutes of being active,” Reynolds explains.

The best exercise you can do for your body and mind? Walk. Every day.

“If people want to be healthier and prolong their life span, all they really need to do is go for a walk,” Reynolds stresses. “It’s the single easiest thing anyone can do.”

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走路最好，尤其是快走。這有演化上的原因，因為早期人類探索新環境和覓食都需要走很多的路，因此當人一直走時，大腦就以為人在探索新環境，需要有適應新地方的能力，於是分泌BDNF來幫助形成新的神經連接以利學習。
走路還有一個好處就是它不須要配備，不論有錢沒錢都可以做。